When Should a Consumer Unit Be Replaced?
The clearest sign is the board itself: if yours still has old rewireable fuses rather than switches, sits on a wooden back board, or has no safety switch (RCD) protecting the circuits, it's behind the current standard and worth replacing. Other prompts are a casing that's cracked or scorched, a board that trips constantly or won't reset, or the moment you add something demanding like a rewire, an electric shower, solar panels or an EV charger, which often needs the protection a modern board provides. Age alone isn't the whole story, but a consumer unit that can't cut power to a single faulty circuit in a fraction of a second is leaving the whole house exposed to one fault.
We swap fuse boxes across the North East every week, from the older terraces around Fulwell and Southwick in Sunderland and the Bensham and Felling streets in Gateshead to homes around South Shields and beyond, so we know the vintages of board these areas tend to have. We're NAPIT registered, City & Guilds qualified and DBS checked, we test every circuit before the changeover so there are no surprises, and most swaps are finished in a day with modern protection on every circuit. The work is tested, certified and notified to Building Control, and you get a free fixed written quote before anything starts.
Signs it's due
Rewireable fuses, a wooden back board, no safety switch, or cracked and scorched casing all mean a board is behind current standards.
Not just about age
An electrical safety check (EICR) tells you for certain whether your board needs replacing or still has life in it, so you're not guessing.
Usually done in a day
We test every circuit first, fit modern protection throughout and certify the work, most swaps completed within a single day.
Your questions, answered
Does an old fuse box have to be replaced straight away?
Not automatically. If it's safe and working, an older board can carry on, but rewireable fuses or no RCD protection mean it's behind current standards and worth planning to upgrade. An EICR will tell you whether it's an urgent job or one you can schedule.
Why would a new board trip when the old one never did?
A modern consumer unit catches faults the old board silently ignored, which is exactly the protection you're paying for. We test every circuit before the changeover, so anything the new board flags gets found and fixed properly.
How long will the power be off?
Usually just a few hours in the middle of the day. Most swaps are finished within a day, and we restore circuits as we go and plan the changeover to keep disruption to your home as short as possible.
Ready for electrics done properly?
Free fixed quotes across South Shields and Tyne and Wear. Certified work, an immaculate finish and a price that doesn't move.